Bikes Faster than Subway or Car, Seven Years Running

Bikes don't get the kind of infrastructure or investment than cars do, (though they did take over the highways in Toronto this weekend) even though they are possibly the most efficient way to get around. In New York City, they held the seventh annual Great NYC Commuter Race, with commuters competing by car, a bike and a subway from Brooklyn to Union Square in Manhattan.

The result? For the seventh straight year, the bike won in 16.5 minutes; the driver gets in at 22 minutes; and the subway rider transit was last with 29 minutes.

From the New York Times City Room Blog:

"New Yorkers care about the environment, but what New Yorkers really care about is their time," said Wiley Norvell, the spokesman. "For a huge number of New Yorkers, bicycle commuting is the fastest way to get to work. If you have more than one train for your commute. Chances are a bicycle is going to get there faster."

The Times was not impressed, and noted that the route seemed to be picked to favour the biker.

"There were also some other factors in the race to consider: it was a sidewalk-to-sidewalk race, meaning that the bicyclist did not have to lock up the bike and the driver did not have to look for parking — which is biased against straphangers.

Anyway, Mr. Norvell finally acknowledged, "The purpose was to showcase the time competitiveness of the bicycle."